The Final Sacrifice
by thatfairytailgirl
Summary: Lucy has been having nightmares of Tartaros and monsters with red eyes. Thinking the dreams are connected to the recent losses, Lucy tries hard to act normal, that is until her nightmares become reality. Now having to be protected by strangers from another world, how will Lucy keep her secret hidden? What final sacrifices will have to be made before Fairy Tail loses Lucy forever?
1. Chapter 1

**Ok, I have had this idea in my head for a while now, and because I love GrimmjowxLucy so much, I decided to post it for you guys. This is set after the Tartaros Arc in Fairy Tail and after the timeskip in Bleach. All characters belong to Hiro Mashima and Tite Kubo.**

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 **Chapter 1**

 _Pain. That's all I felt as explosions surrounded my body. I heard laughing and cracked my eyes open to see Jackal standing over me, his hand glowing. I closed my eyes, ready for the final blow when I was suddenly lifted up, the lower part of my body submerged in water. I opened my eyes again to see an angry blue haired mermaid, her right hand raised and a large wall of water in front of us._

 _"Lucy," Aquarius started, her grip on my waist tightening slightly. "Their curse power is too strong. None of the Celestial Spirits can hold them off for long, but…there is a way we can still win." I pulled out of Aquarius' grasp to stand beside her._

 _"How?" I asked weakly, feeling exhausted and powerless._

 _"It's called Recompense Summoning. Any Celestial Mage who is able to summon three gates at once has the ability to summon the Celestial Spirit King." Her breath became heavy as she raised her other hand to keep holding the water._

 _"How? I didn't know he had a key," I weakly said, beginning to feel hopeful._

 _"There is no physical key. The way to summon the Celestial Spirit King is to break one of the gold keys. If there is enough trust between the owner and spirit, it will work…Lucy, break my key." I began shaking my head._

 _"No, I can't."_

 _"Lucy, you have to. There's no other choice. You have to save your friends," Aquarius yelled._

 _"But your my friend, too. I can't sacrifice one friend to save the rest of my friends. I won't do it." Tears began streaming down my face as I refused to go along with this plan._

 _"Tch. Stupid girl, I hate you and I'm looking forward to being free. Now I'll be able to go on dates with Scorpio without being interrupted."_

 _"I don't care if you hate me. I still love you Aquarius, and you are still my friend." I knew I was sobbing, but I couldn't do what she was asking._

 _"You need to stop relying on others so much. Right now, you are the only one who can save your friends. So stop crying and BREAK MY KEY!" Aquarius yelled. I reluctantly did as she said, crying uncontrollably as I poured my magic into Aquarius' key until it shattered. Everything seemed to freeze and I looked up to see Aquarius fading._

 _"AQUARIUS!" I yelled, reaching toward her._

 _"Thank you for everything, Lucy." Was her final words before she completely disappeared. I collapsed on the ground, holding Aquarius' key, tears streaming down my face. Hearing laughing, I looked up expecting to see Jackal, but everything had turned black. Wiping away my tears, I looked around only to be surrounded by white, ghost-like creatures. They were just floating around, as if they were lost._

 _"H-hello?" I hesitantly called out, my voice hoarse from my crying. I got no response. I walked toward the white creatures and felt the urge to reach out to them, to help them in some way. As soon as my hand touched one, they all turned on me, red eyes lighting up the darkness. They began closing in on me, my body burning from the intensity of their gazes. Just as they had trapped me in the a small circle, light purple eyes appeared out of the darkness, heading toward me._

I woke up gasping for breath. I sat up in bed, covered in sweat from the nightly attacks. Its been three weeks since the defeat of Tartaros. Everyone has been working non-stop on rebuilding the guild, yet the recent battle had left deep scars on everyone. Elfman has been working without rest, wanting to prove to the guild that he was sorry for blowing up their home. Nobody blamed him, though. He just wanted to save Lisanna, we all understood that, but couldn't bring ourselves to voice it. Erza was able to deal with the images of the torture she endured. Though she was still a little sensitive to some things due to loss of all her senses, she was basically back to normal.

The Raijinshuu were healed of their sickness, as well as Laxus who had been resting, but blames himself for not being able to protect his family. Thanks to Juvia, Gray has been able to cope with the loss of his father a second time, and has been training his new powers. Sting and Rogue have been staying at Fairy Tail to help with the build, but everyone knew the dragon slayers wanted to be together to mourn the loss of their dragons.

Everyone except Natsu, who had left two days ago.

Not leaving anything behind except a note making me promise that I would protect the guild in his place, Natsu and Happy left without a word. They left me to deal with this pain alone. No one in the guild knows what I did to save them. When asked, I just tell them I summoned three Celestial Spirits. I couldn't bring myself to tell them the truth when they all have wounds of their own to heal from.

I reach toward my neck and held the broken key in my hand. I had turned it into a necklace, wanting to keep it close to me at all times. I felt tears glide down my face. "Aquarius," I whispered into the dark room. There was a flash of light and I was suddenly pulled into warm arms.

"Princess, please stop blaming yourself. Aquarius doesn't blame you. Please. Your stronger than this," Loke's voice sounded through the room. I pulled away from him to look up at his face.

"I can't just stop blaming myself, Loke. I sacrificed a friend to save my other friends. To me that is saying Fairy Tail is more important than my Celestial Spirits, when I love both of you equally. Hurting you guys goes against everything I believe in. I-" I choked back a sob as guilt flooded my chest.

"I know, but Lucy, you need Fairy Tail. You have to tell them what happened. You are hurting way too much to deal with this on your own." Loke's arms tightened around me.

"I can't. They are all going through their own problems. What kind of friend would I be if I added my problems?" My voice sounded quiet as I held back more tears that threatened to spill.

"Lucy-"

"Force Gate Closure," I softly said, not wanting to hear anymore. Loke disappeared and I stared out the window, just noticing that the sun was rising. I debated whether to go back to sleep, but terrified of the dreams I would have, I decided to get up and get ready to head to the guild. I put on a blue shirt that hugged my body, but covered Aquarius' tattoo along with the necklace, a pair of tight dark jeans and short black boots. I looked in the mirror, my hand brushing over the spot where Aquarius' key was.

"Do not cry. Do not cry. Act normal. Just be normal," I told myself, repeating the same words I've said ever since the end of the battle. I put on my best smile and walked out of my apartment. When I first changed my appearance, everyone had given me weird looks, but thankfully no one questioned it. I still acted happy and cheerful around the guild, putting up a mask to hide my hurt, something I learned very well during my days as an heiress. No one thought differently, but there would be times when I felt my mask slipping and that was when I'd have to leave. Then when Natsu left, a small part of myself shattered. Losing the two people who were closest to me had broken a part of me. Unconsciously, my hand went up to the key around my neck and I had to fight back the lump that formed in my throat.

"Lucy! Watch out!" Someone yelled, pulling me out of my thoughts. I barely had time to duck before a large slab of wood cut through the space my head was just at.

"I'm so sorry, Lucy. You aren't hurt are you? You may hit me for my actions," Erza's voice came from my right and I turned to see her staring at me, the wooden board laying on her shoulder as if it was a sack of potatoes.

"It's fine, Erza. It was my fault. I wasn't paying attention. Is there anything I can help with?" I asked, smiling and wanting to divert the topic. I noticed that the guild was almost finished and I felt a small relief that one thing wouldn't be disappearing from my life.

"Everything's almost done out here. Why don't you see if Mira needs any help at the bar?" Erza suggested, smiling in return. I nodded and headed in. Most of the girls were already here, setting up the inside while the guys fixed the outside. I was amazed at how fast we were able to build the guild from the ground up. The mayor had even helped by giving us money, saying that it was thanks for protecting and saving them. Thanks to the money, we had everything we needed in just a few short weeks, and everyone begun working immediately. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if it get's finished soon.

"Hey Lu-chan," Levy's voice called out and I turned to see the blunnette ordering a mumbling Gajeel around as he bolted things into place. I smiled and waved at them, finding it funny how the small girl had such a huge hold on the tough dragon slayer. Smiling, I made my way towards Mira, avoiding people who were running around, and found her at the bar.

"Hey Mira. Is there anything I can do to help?" I asked.

"Hey Lucy. Yeah, can you help me fix breakfast. Nearly everyone is here and I'm sure they haven't ate anything yet." I nodded and followed her into the kitchen. Not able to do much physical work, I had been helping Mira cook for the guild members as they worked hard on rebuilding our home. I found that it was a nice distraction, and talking to Mira about silly, everyday things helped me to forget my own pain for a little while.

We had just finished cooking everything when people started flooding in, sitting in the few tables that were up while the rest sat on the ground. Mira immediately started serving people and I followed her, smiling and chatting with everyone. Once everyone had a plate, I grabbed my own and sat between Gray and Erza, taking comfort in the warm atmosphere they provided. I had just took a bite of my food when the newly put doors slammed open, scaring me as I unconsciously slid closer to Gray. Many people had jumped up, ready for a fight as they saw eight figures standing in the doorway.

"Who are you and what do you want?" Erza demanded, already holding a sword, a dark and threatening aura surrounding her.

"Is this Fairy Tail?" a man's voiced asked. When no one answered, the same voice continued.

"If it is, then one of your members is in danger."


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you to everyone who has favorited, followed, and reviewed. I am sorry I made you wait so long for a new update, but here is the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it :)**

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 **Chapter 2**

"What do you mean? Who are you?" Erza once again asked, pointing her sword toward them.

"Erza. Stand down. These people are not the enemy," Master's voice echoed around the building and his small form stepped from behind the group, the First Master floating beside him.

"Master. What is going on?" Erza demanded, lowering her sword but not putting it away.

"These people have come to warn us and help defend against what is about to come." As soon as the words left his mouth, shouts of protests and confusion filled the guild hall as the Master was bombarded with questions.

"QUIET!" The Master yelled, gaining everyone's attention. "All of you sit down and shut up. We will explain everything that we know and no one is to say a word unless they want to receive _the punishment._ " Everyone shivered, but nodded, to afraid of the punishment to say anything.

"Now then," Master said, turning to the people beside him. "Let's go in and I will let you guys explain." They nodded and followed the tiny man to the front of the guild. As they came in, I couldn't help but notice how different they looked and the odd clothing they were wearing was nothing that I had seen in Fiore. The first person was a man with long black hair with some parts of it held up by two white pieces on the right side of his head and three on top that fell across the left side his face. He was wearing a white jacket over some black robes with a white scarf around his neck and a sword hung at his right side, a gloved hand resting on the hilt. His grey eyes looked forward and he had an air about him that reminded me of my times as an heiress.

The second person was a small boy of about thirteen or fourteen. He had spiked white hair and large turquoise eyes. He had on the same thing as the first man, but he had a green scarf wrapped around his neck and his sword was on his back, attached by a star cross clasp in the front. The third person was a very beautiful woman. With long wavy strawberry blonde hair, light blue eyes and a very large chest had many of the men in guild ogling her. She had on plain black robes with a long pink scarf over her shoulders, a thin silver necklace that traveled into her breasts and a sword that hung on her back.

The next three people all had on the same outfits as the first woman, but one of the men had long bright red hair that was tied back in a band with some type of head gear on his forehead, covering tattoos that reached up to his hairline. His brown eyes sweeping over the guild, his hand slightly resting on the sword that was hanging from his right hip. The second man had vibrant orange hair and warm brown eyes that seemed friendly. He had a slight grin on his face as he walked past us, a rather large sword being held on his back by a red strap across his chest. A petite girl followed behind him, her dark blue eyes continuing to look forward. Short black hair came to her shoulders with a strand laying between her nose before curving toward the right side of her face, a sword also hanging on her right hip.

Another woman walked in behind them, her appearance drawing in the gazes of the men as they ogled her. She had short blonde hair that was braided, tan skin, and aqua blue eyes that held a power about her that I've never seen in any woman in Fiore, including Erza. The majority of her face was covered by her jacket that barely covered her chest and exposed her stomach. She had on long white pants that covered most of the black boots she had on with a sword hanging sideways on her back.

The last person to come in was tall and muscular. He was wearing an open white jacket with the sleeves torn off, showing strong arms with hands shoved into his white pants, his wrist grazing against the sword that was hanging on his right side. A large scar stretched across the right side of his chest down to his left hip, barely missing the giant hole that was in the middle of his stomach. _How can someone have a giant hole in their stomach and not be dead,_ I thought as my eyes traveled up to his face. His spiked light blue hair reached the base of his neck with a few strands falling across his face in different places. A large jawbone sat on the left side of his cheek, showing the remains of gums and teeth that should have been there.

As if he knew he was being watched, he turned his head and I was met with piercing blue eyes that seemed to have a calm disposition, but had a dangerous feral glint behind it. I barely registered the small green markings under the corner of his eyes when suddenly, his appearance changed to a familiar dark blonde demon who haunted my dreams. His psychotic yellow eyes staring at me with a wide grin, a glowing yellow hand raising, ready to blow me to pieces.

A cold hand landed on my shoulder breaking me out of the nightmare. I glanced over to see Gray looking at me in concern, questions running through his eyes. I shook my head and gave him a small smile, silently reassuring him that I was alright. He seemed to by it, but slid closer, the coolness from his body freezing the sweat that had formed on me. I took a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heart as the fear I felt slowly faded. As I took one final breath, I felt eyes on me and I looked up to see the blue-haired man staring at me emotionlessly. My breath hitched as an image of Jackal started to appear again and I quickly turned my head away, not able to look at him though I still felt his gaze.

"All right, brats," Master called out from the bar, even though our attention was already on him. "What we are about to tell you must stay within this guild, do you understand?" After receiving several nods, he continued. "To begin, I know some of you remember Edolas, the parallel world to Earthland?" murmurs echoed around the members who remembered, but went silent when Master spoke again. "It seems that Edolas is not the only other world out there. There is one called Soul Society, were souls are sent by Shinigami and live in what could be called the afterlife. This is where I will let our guests will explain the rest," Master said, stepping aside and sitting down, drinking the mug of beer Mira placed in front of him. The white-haired boy nodded and stepped forward.

"For the past several months, our Research and Development squad has been receiving unknown spiritual pressure that seemed to be far away. After some research, the captain had found this world and readings of spiritual pressure that should not belong here. He had a difficult time trying to find the cause due to the magical properties of this world, but soon discovered a certain area that had more than unusual high amounts of energy. He predicted that if there was a large group of people with magical abilities, then there may be a few who would be able to see them and would be in danger. To prevent this, our Captain-Commander ordered us to come here and protect the ones who had the sight while trying to find the source." It was quiet for a few minutes after he finished as everyone's mind mulled over the new information.

"What are these "spiritual pressure's" that you are talking about?" Freed suddenly asked, breaking the silence.

"Spiritual pressure is the amount of power a person has. In a sense, from my understanding of this world so far, would be similar to the amount of magic each of you have," the blond-haired female answered, her aqua blue eyes calmly staring at us.

"What exactly is it we're fighting against?" Gray spoke up. To those who didn't know him, they would assume that his voice was steady, but I could detect a slight quiver in his words and knew exactly what was wrong. We had just fought and won a deadly war that had claimed a price from everyone, and now we had to prepare for another battle with creatures we knew absolutely nothing about? _We just can never catch a break, can we?_ I thought, feeling the burden and pain of my own sacrifice, my hand reaching up toward my neck.

"We are not too sure about that. In our world, there are souls who have either stayed in the Human World for too long or have not crossed over to Soul Society and lose their hearts, both becoming Hollows. These creatures are dangerous and will devour souls or humans to fulfill its hunger. Many Shinigami fight Hollows on a daily basis, but there are times when there are conflicts within Soul Society that leads to a Shinigami's betrayal and a war breaks out. Until we know for sure what we are up against, we will remain here until whatever it is appears," the short black-haired girl explained.

"The Shinigami's have decided to join Fairy Tail for the time being until this problem is solved. So I expect every one of you to welcome them. Now lets celebrate!" the Master shouted, raising his mug. Several shouts followed and the guild turned into its usual rowdy self. It didn't take long before a fight broke out and I quickly made my escape before I got dragged into the middle of it. Having no where to go, I made my way to the bar, my mouth lifting into a small smile as I saw the confused and surprised looks on the Shinigami's faces.

"If you're serious about joining Fairy Tail, you better get used to this because it happens on a regular basis. Several times a day actually," I started to explain as I approached them, ignoring the pain I felt as I remembered that most of the fights were started by a certain pink-haired dragon slayer. "My name is Lucy by the way," I introduced myself, masking the hurt and smiled at them.

"I'm Rukia," the black-haired girl introduced herself first, a small smile on her face as she looked at me. "And this is Ichigo," she pointed to the orange-haired guy beside her.

"Yo," he said, looking back at the fight, an almost eager look in his eyes. My smile faltered a little, remembering seeing that look in Natsu's eyes all the time when he wanted to fight.

"You know, you can join in if you want. They won't mind. In fact, they'll accept anyone into their fights whether you want to or not," I grumbled, thinking of all the times I got dragged into a guild fight. Without anymore prompting, Ichigo immediately jumped into the fray of bodies, already ending up in a fight against Elfman. Rukia sighed and shook her head.

"The idiot will never want to leave now," she said, just as soon as the words left her mouth, the blue-haired man jumped into the middle, punching Gajeel in the face.

"And there goes another idiot," the red-head on the other side of Rukia mumbled before turning to me. "I'm Renji and the idiot that just joined in is Grimmjow," he said, introducing himself and pointing the blue-head that was lost in the fight. The rest introduced themselves with a look of disgust and annoyance on their faces as they watched the fight. Cana had somehow already managed to pull the strawberry blonde beauty, Rangiku, into a drinking contest, both of them still going and getting drunker. The little white-haired boy, Toshiro, was growling in annoyance at her, telling her to lay off the alcohol to which she responded with hiccups and slurred sentences. The last two people, Byakuya and Harribel, were sitting at the end of the bar, talking quietly to Master who was nodding at whatever they were saying.

I sighed as I looked over the rowdy guild that had seemed to return to normal, but I couldn't ignore the feeling in my chest that nothing would ever be the same again. Sighing again, I turned toward Mira, about to order a strawberry milkshake when I felt eyes staring into my back. Slightly turning my head, I found light blue eyes watching me from across the guild. _Why the hell does he keep looking at me?_ I thought starting to feel trapped, and slid off the stool, deciding to head home to escape Grimmjow's penetrating gaze.

Waving goodbye to everyone, I tried to walk normally out of the guild. Taking a deep breath when the door closed behind me, I started to take a step forward when a deep voice called from behind me.

"Where are you going?" I gasped and whirled around, coming face-to-face with the man I wanted to avoid.

"I-I'm heading home," I stuttered out, fear welling up inside me as an image of Jackal took the place of Grimmjow's face. I quickly spun around, averting my gaze and trying to walk away from him. I didn't get far when a large hand wrapped around my wrist, stopping me.

"Y-" was the only sound he made before a loud roar cut him off. We both whipped our heads to the source and my body froze at what was in front of me. A large black bear-like creature stood on all fours, its white face and empty black eyes looking at us, causing me to tremble as fear overtook my body. As if it sensed my fear, the creature let out another roar and raised one of its huge paws then swung it down, razor sharp claws heading straight toward me.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

The creature's claws was coming down too fast for me to dodge, so I braced myself for the attack. I closed my eyes, waiting for the blow, but nothing came except for the sound of metal and a pained howl. I opened my eyes to see a white jacket filling my vision and I slowly lifted by gaze to see blue hair. I stood there shocked as I watched Grimmjow struggle to keep his sword against the creature's huge paw that was bleeding. The large animal pulled its paw back a little then swung it down hard toward Grimmjow, who took the attack head on. The force of the blow caused Grimmjow to fly backwards into me as we both landed on our backs several meters from the beast.

"Lucy!" I heard my name being called, but I couldn't answer due to the heavy weight on my chest and my mouth being smothered by hair. Footsteps sounded around my head, but I couldn't see who it was since my vision was turning black from lack of oxygen. I thought I was about to pass out when the weight was lifted off of me and I could breath. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes as I let oxygen return to my lungs.

"Lucy, are you alright?" A voice that I recognized as Erza's asked me. I nodded, slowly opening my eyes to see three worried faces gazing down at me. I smiled and held my hand out to Gray who took it and helped me sit up. Wendy began looking over me for injuries and sighed in relief when she found none.

I looked over at the battle that was taking place. Grimmjow had gotten back up and was fighting the first creature that appeared, but now all the other Shinigami's were fighting against their own beasts that seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"What the hell are those things?" I asked aloud, fear coursing through me as I watched the little boy, Toshiro, barely miss the swing of his opponent's tail.

"What is what, Lucy? What's going on?" Gray asked me, looking around confused as he watched the fight in front of us.

"What's going? What do you mean what's going on? Can you not see those huge monsters right in front of you?" My voice rose as I saw everyone looking around, trying to see what I saw and I began to panic. _How can they not see those those...beasts that's just a few feet in front of them? Please, don't tell me I've gone crazy._

"Calm down, Lucy," a soft voice spoke and I looked up to see Rukia's big blue eyes staring at me. "You're not going crazy. I can see them and so can the other Shinigami. I think a few of your friends can see them as well," she said, pointing her finger toward three figures standing at the guilds door, their eyes fixated on the battle before them. I nodded and slowly got up from where I was sitting before making my way over to them.

"You guys can see them too, right?" I asked uncertainly. All three of them nodded, too shocked to speak, I guess.

"Do you have any idea what they are?" I asked, turning to the green-haired mage who just shook his head.

"I have no clue, Miss Lucy," Freed answered, not taking his eyes of the battle. The other two didn't say anything, just kept watching and flinching every time one of the creatures landed a blow to the Shinigami's.

"Mira? Bickslow?" I quietly called them, but didn't get a response. I sighed and turned to the fight, trying to figure out what they were.

"What are they?" I mumbled to myself.

"They are the Hollows that we had told you about." I jumped slightly, startled by the sudden voice that answered. I looked down to see that Rukia had followed me.

"That's a Hollow? How the hell do you kill the thing?" Bickslow questioned, coming out of his shock.

"The only way to kill a Hollow is by smashing the white mask on their faces," Rukia replied as she watched the fight, her hand holding her sword, the hilt pushed a little ready to unsheathe if necessary.

"Why aren't you fighting?" I asked, curious as to why she was here.

"I was ordered to stay back and protect everyone. Since the majority of the guild can not see the Hollows, someone who can see them needed to stay back in case one got through." I nodded, understanding, turning my attention back to the fight. _We should do something,_ I thought. I don't know if it was just Natsu rubbing off on me or not wanting to be on the sideline while someone else did the fighting, but I wanted to get in there in fight. I didn't want to be seen as hopeless or weak as I used to be. I had lost too much just to be seen as the little blonde girl in Team Natsu.

I was so lost in my thoughts that I didn't realize that another Hollow had appeared behind us, nor did I hear everyone calling my name. But I did notice when something sharp slashed across my back, causing me to fall forward with a pained cry. Tears blurred my vision as I tried to stand up, but the best I could do was roll over, hissing in pain as the rocks and dirt rubbed into my wounds. Metal hitting the ground and the earth shaking had me looking up to see an enormous Hollow, much bigger than the others, looming over us.

It had a purple body with a hole over where its heart should have been. It had a white mask just like the others, but it pointed out on either side of its head, almost like sideways horns. It stood on two legs and was hunched over, long arms hanging by its side. Yellow eyes stared at something between its wide hands, its mouth opening to reveal rows of sharp, jagged teeth as it leaned forward. Something was struggling to get out of the creature's grasp and as I looked closer, I realized it wasn't a something but a someone.

Rukia was trapped under the monster's hand, her sword laying just out of reach. Several blasts attacked the monster, but nothing seemed to affect it. All it did was sweep its long tail that I hadn't even noticed was there, knocked Mira and Freed into the guild while taking its other hand and hitting Bickslow, sending him crashing into a building. With nothing else in the way to stop it, the Hollow began to lean forward again, its mouth turning into a wide grin as it watched Rukia struggling to get free.

My body froze as I watched the Hollow advance toward Rukia, its mouth a breath away from her face, saliva dripping onto her. Not stopping to think about it, I pushed myself up, ignoring the searing hot pain that shot through me and with speed I didn't know I had, rushed forward with my whip in hand. With as much strength as I could muster, I flicked my wrist, guiding the whip toward the Hollow's face. Its scream of pain echoed around me as it moved backwards, releasing Rukia who rolled over, gasping for breath.

I ignored everything around me as my gaze stayed fixated on the monster in front of me. My instincts guided me as nothing else mattered to me in that moment except to protect my family. _I will not lose anyone else,_ I thought as I mercilessly attacked it, not giving it chance to recover, my whip hitting against its mask. Little pieces started to fall off causing it to cover its face with its hands. I took the opportunity to grab a key and called out Loke.

"Open, Gate of the Lion, Leo!" I shouted. Loke appeared instantly and without further instruction, jumped toward the Hollow, his fist lighting up as he smashed it into its face. The Hollow gave one last scream as its body dissolved into nothing. I bent over panting as I tried to catch my breath. My senses started returning to normal and I finally noticed how quiet it had gotten. I glanced around to see the other Shinigami finishing up their fights as the rest of the guild members either helped the ones that were injured or was standing around in shock, not sure what to make of what just happened.

"Lucy, are you alright?" A soft voice asked. I glanced over to see Rukia standing with the help of Renji, a large red mark beginning to appear on her neck. I nodded, not able to voice my reply as my head started to swim. My vision began to blur as I watched people rush around everywhere as my guildmates tried to calm the townspeople who ended up in battle. As I stood there looking around, small white creatures with red faces started to appear, floating in through the crowd of people who didn't even notice them. My body froze as I recognized them. The same creatures that haunted my nightmares.

"Lucy?" Erza called my name but I couldn't look at her. My eyes stayed on the floating figures, who had all suddenly turned their attention to me. I staggered backwards, trying to get away but tripped over something and landed on my back. The figures quickly surrounded me, blocking out the worried faces of my friends. Their fingerless red hands reaching toward me, causing intense pain to run through me where ever they touched.

"No! Please stop! Make them go away! WHAT DO YOU WANT?!" I screamed, tears streaming down my face from the pain and fear that was welling up inside me. Just when I thought my body was going to give in from the excruciating pain, the waves of white began to disperse, leaving behind frantic mages that were trying to figure out what was going on. As my head rolled to the side, the last thing I remembered seeing was a familiar purple body hiding among the crowd before my vision went black.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

 _"Lucy," a voice quietly called out._

 _"Who's there?" I spun around, trying to find the source, but all I saw was black._

 _"Lucy," the voice said again and a bright light appeared in front of me. I shielded my eyes, waiting for the light to dim when the voice became more clearer._

 _"Lucy," she said as I lowered my hands and felt tears well up in my eyes. "Thank you for everything." Aquarius stood in front of me, a small smile on her usually angry face. My tears dripped down my face as I moved closer, trying to reach out to her but I couldn't move. I looked down to see red hands around my legs, holding me down. White bodies began appearing between us, separating me from Aquarius._

 _"Aquarius!" I shouted, struggling to break free, but the bodies kept appearing, pushing me away until I saw nothing but a sea of white._

 _"Aquarius!" I screamed, tears falling faster as the white creatures held tighter to my body until I couldn't move. I stood there, trapped and feeling helpless, my body shaking from the sobs that I was trying to hold in when I heard a low chuckle fill the black void._

 _"My, my. What do we have here? Did a little girl get lost on her way home?" a man's voice echoed around me._

 _"Who's there?" I asked, frantically looking around. I expected to see Jackal appear, coming to finish me off, but instead a man with long white hair stepped out of the shadows. The white creatures made a path for the man as he started walking toward me his green robe and black cloak standing out from the white sea. As he got closer I could make out a scar that reached from his hairline to the middle of his cheek, barely grazing the edge of his right eye. He stopped walking and stood a couple of feet in front of me, his light purple eyes studying me._

 _"I believe you will do just fine," he muttered, stepping closer and placing a hand on my cheek. "It must be hard seeing the one you love die every time you close your eyes," he whispered. Laughing came from behind him, yellow eyes appeared staring at me from over his shoulder-_

I woke up breathing hard and sweating. I laid there covering my eyes with my hands and willed the tears to go away, trying to get the nightmare out of my head. Once my breathing was normal, I wiped my eyes before attempting to sit up. My arms were shaking under the weight of my body as I pulled myself up and leaned against the head of the bed.

"Lucy?" a soft voice called my name and I glanced up to see Wendy looking at me in concern along with several of our guildmates and the Shinigami's.

"Wendy? Where am I? What happened?" I asked, my head still reeling from the nightmare.

"You're in the infirmary. Hollows had attacked, but at the end you started screaming and asking us to make them go away. Who were you talking about, Lucy?" Master's gentle voice questioned me as he came through the crowd and stood at the foot of the bed.

"I-I don't know, Master. You mean you couldn't see them?" He shook his head along with a few others. I looked over at Mira, Freed, and Bickslow. "What about you guys? You could see the hollows, did you see the little white ones too?" My voice rose a little and my heart started beating faster as they shook their heads.

"Well, what about you guys? They had to be from your world because I've never seen them in ours," I asked the Shinigami's, panic setting in as they also shook their hands.

"Oh man," I whispered, pulling my legs up and burying my head in my arms. My breathing started became labored and my heart beat faster as thoughts raced through my head. _No one else saw them, I'm the only one. Am I going crazy? That's nothing new for Fairy Tail, but still, this isn't normal._

"Shit! She's panicking." I heard someone say, but I couldn't hear them clearly.

"Wendy, can't you do something?" I thought I heard Gray ask, but I wasn't sure with the thundering of my heart in my ears. Suddenly I felt something warm and my body began to calm down. When my heart returned to normal and I could breath easier, I smiled over at Wendy, silently thanking her for helping me. She smiled back and sat beside me, holding my hand in case I panicked again.

"Lucy," Master said, waiting for me to look at him before continuing. "What did you see, child?"

"I-I'm not sure. One minute all I could think about was helping Rukia and then these… these little white creatures appeared out of no where. Their hands were red and everywhere they touched me made my skin feel like it was burning and all I could feel was pain." My voice shook as I remembered what happened and the events from my nightmare came to my mind.

"This is very worrisome. If these creatures come back again, we won't be able to do anything since only Lucy can see them. This is the first I have heard of them, so-"

"This isn't the first time I've seen them," I interrupted Master as all eyes turned to me.

"What do you mean, Lucy? If they caused you this much pain, why didn't you tell us? We could've helped you sooner," Erza questioned, hurt lacing her voice as she looked at me with tears in her eyes.

"It's not like any of you could have done anything. The only time I see them are when I'm asleep. Every night, I-" I stopped talking, not wanting to tell them of the nightmares that plague me every night. That would only lead to me telling them about Aquarius which I wasn't ready to do yet, not when I still haven't come to terms with it.

"Child, you still should have told us. We are your family. We will help you in any way we can," Master gently scolded me, worry written all over his face. I nodded, not wanting to argue with the man I considered as a father.

"Now, I believe we need to do something about these Hollows. Since there are four of us that can see them, I think it would be good to have two Shinigami's with each of them," Master began, looking over at the Shinigami's who agreed.

"Why, Jiji? They are capable of handling themselves," Laxus asked sounding defensive and crossing his arms as he leaned against the wall.

"I'm not saying they can't. It would be good for them to train and learn how to fight these Hollows since the rest of us cannot see them. Plus, with these creatures that Lucy has seen, it would be best for her to have some help."

"We can protect Lucy just fine, Gramps," Gray argued, coming over to stand next to me.

"You may be, Gray, but I have a feeling these creatures are from the Shinigami's world, therefore they will know what to do if she is attacked again," Master replied, then turned to look at Wendy. "Wendy, my dear, I am afraid you will be needed now more than ever. I will have Porlyusica to help as much as possible, but be ready just in case.

"Of course, Master," Wendy said, sitting up little straighter a blush dusting her face. A small smile pulled at my lips. I knew how much Wendy doubted herself, so being needed would hopefully boost her confidence in her magic.

"Jeez child. No need to get so embarrassed," Carla's motherly voice said from the other side of Wendy. I looked over at the white cat to see her smiling at Wendy with a proud look in her eyes. Despite all the nagging she does, I knew Carla really cared about Wendy and the rest of us. Sensing me staring at her, Carla turned her brown eyes on me, a sadness creeping in them as if she knew something. I quickly looked away, trying to avoid her eyes. _She knows,_ I thought, my heart beating a little faster. _No she can't possibly know. I never told anyone, so there's no way she could have found out. After everything that's happened, my brain just isn't functioning right,_ I silently reassured myself, take little breaths to calm my heart before the dragon slayers heard it.

"Alright," a deep voice said, gaining my attention. "We have decided who is going to train who," Toshiro announced.

"Ichigo and Rangiku will be with Bickslow." Bickslow did his signature tongue roll as he looked over Rangiku causing me to roll me eyes at his pervertedness.

"Byakuya and Rukia is with Mira, while myself and Renji will be with Freed," Toshiro continued, a bad feeling growing in my stomach as I saw who was left. _No, please not him. Anyone but him,_ I silently pleaded closing my eyes, but I knew it was no good.

"And Harribel and Grimmjow will be with Lucy." I took a deep breath and opened my eyes, smiling at the two people who will be with me. They both nodded though Grimmjow's blue eyes stayed on me. I avoided his gaze, not wanting to see the yellow eyes that I knew would take his place. _Come on, Lucy. Get a grip. Grimmjow is not Jackal,_ I mentally scolded myself, trying to get my barely functioning brain to understand that. I still felt his eyes on me and without meaning to, my eyes found his. As I waited for the yellow eyes to appear, the door slammed open revealing a panting Lisanna.

"Master, there's a problem," Lisanna said between breaths.

"What happened?" Master questioned, his body tensing for another attack when two cloaked figures appeared behind her, removing their hoods to reveal two familiar faces.

"Princess Hisui? Arcadios?" I asked, surprised to see them here.

"Lucy," Hisui said, a small smile on her face at seeing me.

"What happened, Princess?" Master asked politely, though his tone said he wanted to know now.

"There was been a break in at the Palace last night, and the Celestial Globe was stolen."


	5. Chapter 5

**OMG! I am so sorry guys. I did not mean to let it go this long without updating. With exams, school letting out, and graduating, which I can finally say "I made it," I lost track of time and didn't relaize how long it was until Animefreakt83 messaged me, and thanks for that too. Hopefully now that I have some time I can properly update my stories and some other ideas that I have. But for now here is the next long awaited chapter. Enjoy :)**

* * *

 **Chapter 5**

Stunned silence filled the room as we all looked at the Princess. _How could someone slip into the palace without getting caught?_ I thought to myself.

"How did they not get caught?" Freed spoke up, voicing my thoughts.

"We are not sure. The security lacrimas picked up nothing and the guards that were stationed there saw no one enter or leave," Aracdios began explaining.

"We believe it was a mage with the ability to turn themselves invisible. The Magic Council is looking into it but have found nothing, so we came to ask the guilds if they knew of anyone with this type of magic," the Princess finished, looking at each of us. No one said anything and by the look on their faces, they didn't have any more of a clue then the Princess.

"Would it help if the dragon slayers came to the palace and tried to get a scent on whoever it was?" I offered up. The Princess thought for a minute, then nodded.

"It might. We hadn't thought of that when we were at Sabertooth, so we can stop by and ask the Twin Dragon Slayers as we head back," the Princess said, looking at the three dragon slayers in the room who nodded.

"We'll leave as soon as everyone has their things ready," Aracdios said, turning toward the door.

As Hisui and Arcadios started to leave the room, the Princess turned back and looked at me before saying, "Lucy, will you come too? Maybe another Celestial Wizard can help." I was surprised by her question, but I nodded anyway. She smiled at me and left, Aracdios following right behind her.

"Well," Master started. "Laxus, Wendy, Gajeel, Lucy, you better head home and start packing." We nodded and began to head out of the room with the others when Master called out.

"Actually, will Lucy, Harribel, and Grimmjow hang back a minute?" The three of us remained where we were and waited for everyone to leave the room. Once everyone was gone, Master turned to me, a concerned expression on his face.

"Lucy, promise me you will be careful. I am not sure what is going on or why you are seeing the things you are seeing, but I promise Fairy Tail will do its best to protect you. I know the battle we just had is still fresh on everyones mind, including yours, but just remember you are never alone and we will be here every step you take." Tears stung my eyes as I nodded, guilt flooding me as memories of the battle resurfaced. I quickly swallowed the lump that was forming in my throat and watched as Master turned to the other two.

"Lucy is like a daughter to me. She is a strong and brave mage though she tends to doubt herself, so I am trusting you to protect her when needed. Can I trust you for this task?" Master asked, receiving a nod from Harribel and a grunt from Grimmjow.

"Alright then," Master said, jumping down from his spot and beading toward the door. He seemed to hesitate for a minute before glancing back at us.

"I may have not known you two long, but I still consider you my children, so I want you two to also be careful," Master's face still held concern as he looked at the two new memebers who gave slight nods. Sensing that was all he was going to get from them, the little man left, leaving a silence between the three of us. Starting to feel awkward, I deciding to break the awkwardness.

"Let me formally introduce myself. My name is Lucy Heartfilia and I look forward to working with you two," I said, standing up and facing the two who would be with me for Mavis knows how long. I felt Grimmjow's eyes lock on me, but I avoided his gaze and kept my eyes on Harribel.

"I am Tier Harribel and this is Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez," Harribel introduced themselves. I got the feeling that she didn't talk much, but as she looked at me, it was like she was looking into my soul. I turned my gaze away from hers, afraid she would be able to see my scars, but unfortunately my eyes found hypnotic blue eyes. Once again, I felt myself being pulled into his eyes when his face suddenly changed to a crazed smile and feral eyes, trapping me in place. Panic started to set in as I continued to stare, and not even the gold light that filled the room was able to tear my gaze away until the jingle of chains and another set of blue eyes filled my vision.

"I have finished packing for your trip. Punishment, Princess?" Virgo asked, tilting her head slightly to the side. I blinked a couple times, trying to process what just happened.

"Uh..no. No punishment, Virgo. And thank you for packing my things." I smiled at the maid spirit who seemed slightly disappointed but vanished before I could actually tell. Suddenly feeling exhausted, I wondered if I had time to back out, but decidied against it since I had already said I'd go. Sighing, I turned and headed for the door with Harribel and Grimmjow following. I stopped at the top of the stairs, looking down at the guild as they acted like everything was back to normal, but it wasn't. Nothing would ever be the same and I had the oddest feeling that everything was about to change again.

"Lucy," someone called and I looked over to see the three drgaon slayers, the Princess, Arcadios, Gray, and Erza waiting by the door. I quickly made my way down to them, confused as to why Gray and Erza were there.

"What are you two doing?" I asked when I approached the group.

"We convinced the Princess and Master to let us come. We couldn't let you go without us," Gray explained as he put his arm around me.

"Gray. Clothes."

"Huh? What are you-" he glanced down to see he had lost his shirt and pants. Again.

"Dammit. Where did they go?" he asked no one in particular as I sighed, only to feel a cold chill down my spine and knew Juvia had seen the whole thing.

"Can we leave now?" I asked, anxious to get out of here before Juvia could drown me. Hisui nodded and walked out the door, the rest of us trailing behind with Gray running after us to catch up. Once we got our tickets and had borded the train, the Princess began to speak.

"It is about a two day ride to get to Crocus and before we head to the palace, we'll stoo by Sabertooth." We nodded and settled into our seats. Somehow, I ended up between Laxus and Gajeel, who both looked ready to puke at being on the train. Taking pity on the poor tough guys, I reached up and began massaging their heads. They glanced at me in relief and slid down in their seats so I could reach their heads better.

Hearing a snicker, I looked over to see Gray laughing before he was hunched over in his seat, curtsy of a punch from Erza which reminded me of the way she would punch a certain pink-haired person the same way. Shaking my head to get rid of my thoughts and to distract myself from the memories, I looked out the window, only to see a person with familiar blonde hair in the crowd, watching us.


End file.
